Block Island Race Week is on, and Chesapeake Bay sailors are representing well! With 6-10 knots of wind, 182 boats came out to race in 19 classes (four IRC, five PHRF, seven one-design, two cruising and one doublehanded) and managed to get a couple of races off.
On the first day of racing, Naval Academy boats Corsair (TP52) and Dolphin (J/122) both took seconds for the day. In the J/109 One Design, Bill Sweetser of Annapolis, Maryland took first on Rush.
For the J/80 one design, the largest class boasting 18 boats, Clark McKinney of Solomons, MD and his crew aboard Knee Deep took the lead on the first day (1-2) followed by Annapolis resident Will Crump who skippered R80 in third. The wind, at 6-10 knots, had been forecast to blow at least five knots more. “These boats are good in the low teens, but you can be struggling in the light stuff. The fleet got spread out, and everyone was fighting up and down the course." explained Crump, "There are a number of people who are competitive on any given day, and we saw a few of them pop out today.”
Block Island Race week continues through June 28th as they celebrate their 25th Anniversary. To keep up with races and results, head to their website.
Photos courtesy of blockislandraceweek.com
